The National Drought Group has warned England must prepare for an ongoing drought in 2026, unless there is significant rain this autumn and winter. There are concerns about the country’s water resources because of this year’s record dry spring and warm summer.
The expert group – which includes the Met Office, government, regulators, water companies, the National Farmers’ Union, Canal & River Trust, anglers, and conservation experts – met in central London this morning. Â
They heard during an Environment Agency presentation that England needs at least 100% of average rainfall (482mm) to largely recover from drought by the end of March next year. For context, only two months of 2025 have seen more than 100% so far.
Long-term average rainfall stats for 2025 so far:Â
| Jan-2025 | 112% |
| Feb-2025 | 79% |
| Mar-2025 | 25% |
| Apr-2025 | 50% |
| May-2025 | 57% |
| Jun-2025 | 80% |
| Jul-2025 | 89% |
| Aug-2025 | 42% |
| Sept-2025Â | 149%Â Â Â Â |
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- Yorkshire Water has repaired 11,113 leaks since the start of April – one every 26 minutes.
- Yorkshire Water has sent out around 4,000 water saving kits to customers and donated 500 water butts to local community groups.
- Yorkshire Water has upgraded 63,000 water meters to make them smart. In total, the firm has installed 164,000 smart meters, saving 2.2million litres per day by identifying leaks.
- South West Water has launched its Every Drop Counts – Come Rain or Shine campaign providing practical tips for saving water and supporting customers with water meter advice.
- South West Water repaired over 16,100 leaks last year, reducing leakage by over 10 million litres a day.
- Bristol Water has also launched a new Come Rain or Shine campaign and is giving away 1,750 free water butts to customers.
- Thames Water has accelerated its smart meter rollout, installing more than 72,000 since July.
- Thames Water has carried out over 580 Smarter Business visits since July, saving over 2.3 million litres per day.
- Thames Water now has over 50,000 acoustic sensors to detect leaks.
- Wessex Water’s Target 20 campaign has been encouraging customers to save at least 20 litres of water per day, roughly 15% of average daily use.
- Wessex Water emailed over 250,000 customers with tips on how to save water.
- South East Water has increased leakage repairs by 16% compared to last year, fixing 12,326 leaks between April and September.
- South East Water has also speeded up the fixing of leaks – reducing the time taken to fix from an average of 15 days to 12.
- Affinity Water repaired 9,725 leaks between April and September 2025 – representing a 13.45% increase compared to the same period in 2024.
- Install a rain butt to collect rainwater to use in the garden.   Â
- Turn off the taps when brushing teeth or shaving.
- Take shorter showers. Fix a leaking toilet – leaky loos can waste 200-400 litres a day.